Radio legends joined NAR in promoting home ownership

From 1931 to 1954 one of the most popular radio programs in the country featured two storekeepers in the small town of Pine Ridge, Arkansas. The pair kept Americans laughing despite hard times that included the Great Depression and Second World War.

On May 24, 1939, in cooperation with the National Association of Real Estate Boards, they devoted part of their show to “what things make for safety when a family goes into home ownership today and some of the things the family should look for when it is choosing a homesite or a home,” according to the association’s press release.

“The best way to keep yer feet on the ground is to have yer own ground under ‘em,” said Lum Edwards, played by Chester Lauck. His friend and fellow Arkansan Norris Goff played Abner Peabody.

The duo’s fame grew so much that the people of Waters, Arkansas, inspiration for the fictional Pine Ridge, persuaded the post office to legally change the name to Pine Ridge in 1936.

Unfortunately no recording or script of that episode is known to exist, according to the Jot ‘Em Down Store and Museum in Pine Ridge.